Wireless power gets lovely shiny logo

No application yet, but hey!

The Wireless Power Consortium is very close to having a specification, but it has managed to create a logo and an unpronounceable name, so ticking all the Web 2.0 boxes.

The consortium was set up last year in recognition of the fact that without interoperability the technology was doomed to die a quick death, as opposed to the drawn-out affair it's now expecting. But at least now we can mark its grave with a new logo, which the consortium expects to adorn public spaces where compatible devices can be recharged wirelessly:

In case it's not clear that's "Qi", referring to "vital energy"; it is pronounced "chee", and not a reference to a game show presented by Stephen Fry.

The service mark is to be applied to devices conforming to the new standard, version .95 of which is now available to members, and there'll be an interoperability test-fest on 15 September which should lead to version one of the standards being published shortly afterwards.

Wireless charging is already in use, mainly for electric toothbrushes but also as a product differentiator in devices such as the Palm Pre, but being able to deliver 5 watts of power wirelessly isn't a killer application for most people. Standardisation will help reduce the cost, but considering it's taken several decades for manufacturers to agree on a standard charging plug, and very few have adopted that as yet, it's going to be a very long time before we see wireless charging from public booths - if indeed we ever do. ®